


Zuko's birthday

by Juniperboy



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Birthday Party, Drunk Katara, F/F, Fluff, Gaang (Avatar), Jealousy, M/M, Romance, Zukka week 2020, drunk sokka, drunk suki, sukitara, zukka - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:14:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25196032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Juniperboy/pseuds/Juniperboy
Summary: Zuko's never had a birthday party, so Sokka decides to throw him one.
Relationships: Katara/Suki (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 210





	Zuko's birthday

“WHAT?”   
Sokka was astounded. During his weekly afternoon tea with Iroh, the older man had just dropped the news that Zuko’s birthday was in two days. He had said it as though it was nothing as if he were simply announcing the weather forecast, or what he was cooking for dinner.

Iroh nodded, “yes, it’s true. He has never had a birthday party, you know.” Iroh never took his eyes off of Sokka. He wanted to convince his nephew-in-law that Zuko deserved a party.

Thankfully, Sokka didn’t need much convincing.

He stood up and bowed to Iroh. “I must get going, you’ve given me a lot to think about.” Sokka smiled warmly towards him. He always had a soft spot for Iroh, his words of wisdom and cheesy puns had wiggled their way into his heart.

\---

“Guards!” Sokka stormed through the palace, trying to look as professional as possible. Despite being married for a few months, the Fire Nation soldiers still didn’t seem to respect him as much as his husband. Perhaps they judged him for being of Water Tribe descent, or for oftentimes being a fool out in public, potentially ruining the “royal image”. 

Sokka didn’t have time to think about that. He needed the guards’ attention, for Zuko’s sake. 

“What is it, L-Lord Sokka?” A handful of the guards had rushed over to his side, sensing an emergency. 

Maybe Sokka had overreacted a bit. “Schedule a royal dinner, it’s to happen two sundowns from now. We need a cake, the finest food you have, and some good drinks.” Sokka shot a wink at the guards. He had tried to sound as professional as possible, though the guards seemed to have their doubts. 

“Are you sure, my Lord, that the Fire Lord will approve of this?” One of them asked.

“That’s the thing, he’s not supposed to know.” He sighed; if they snitched to Zuko, the plan would be ruined. “Tell him that there’s a very important leader coming to have dinner with him in two days and that he needs to meet with him. For trade, or something.” 

The guards began to nod, “Who should we invite?”   
Shit. 

Well, his family was mostly out of the question; everyone in it was either dead or locked in jail, save Iroh. 

“Uh, the avatar, Katara of the Southern Water Iroh of the Fire Nation, Tribe, Suki of the Kiyoshi Warriors…” Sokka began to think; Aang had told him a few days ago that Toph wouldn't be free for the next few days due to her fights as the Blind Bandit. Who did that leave? “...and Mai of the Fire Nation.” 

He knew that he had taken a risk by inviting Zuko’s ex, but he figured the two had ended on good terms. What’s the worst that could happen?

\---

The day of the part came quickly, and Zuko hadn’t the slightest idea of what his husband was planning. That morning, as they rose from bed, Zuko was grumbling the same things he always did:

“So much work to do...have dinner with Earth King...will be home late…”

Sokka yawned, flopping his arm onto Zuko’s pillow as he watched his husband rise, “how about you stop by the palace before dinner? I can help you get all spiffy, and I can even walk you to dinner.”

Zuko flashed him a smile. The truth was that they hadn’t been spending enough time recently, so this was a nice treat. 

“I’d love that. Thanks, babe.”

Sokka’s heart fluttered.  _ Babe.  _ As they settled into a routine, Zuko had taken fondly to calling Sokka varying pet names, all of which Sokka loved. 

After Zuko had left, Sokka sprang out of bed and opened one of the metal drawers, where he kept his personal items. In it there was a messy portrait of Zuko painted on a piece of parchment, along with a note: 

_ To, Zuko, my Love _

_ When I married you, I became the happiest man alive. hope we can spend the rest of time feeding the turtle ducks together.  _

_ Love, Sokka _

He sighed, a smile spreading across his face. While he wasn’t great at painting, his words made up for it. He scanned Zuko’s birthday present one last time before stuffing it in his bag. The plan was to hand the gift to the guards, who would put it in the Royal dining room before the party started. 

After depositing his gift, Sokka rushed off to the Royal Spa, wanting to look as good as possible for the party. 

\---

“Well, you look handsome,” Zuko laughed, kissing Sokka on the cheek as his husband intercepted him in his arms. “You do realize you’re just walking me to the dinner, right? I don’t think they’ll let you in, despite how handsome you look.”

Sokka had gotten his nails done; his hair, which was out of its usual wolf-tail, had been straightened past his shoulders, and a section of it had been loosely tied up in a bun that rested on top of his head; and finally, he had gotten a full facial, helping to clear up any sort of lingering blemishes on his face.

Sokka let out a laugh.  _ How little he knew.  _ “Of course. I just wanted to look nice for you when you came home from work.” He grabbed his husband’s hand, leading him through the palace. 

“So then, I told commander Akane--” Zuko trailed off, leaving the rest of his story unheard as he gazed into the dining room full of people. “Sokka...this isn’t...did you…?”   
A grin crept onto Sokka’s face, “Happy birthday!” 

Zuko’s face turned red; he felt so underprepared, so underdressed, and how was he supposed to deal with all of this attention? Worse--how was he supposed to deal with his ex-girlfriend, who didn’t even know he was gay?

He gulped; despite his apprehension, he couldn’t deny the love he felt towards Sokka for planning all of this, for bringing everyone he cared about into one space to help him celebrate a momentous occasion. 

Exchanging a look with his husband, Zuko walked into the dining room, hand in hand with Sokka. 

\---

After a few drinks and a delicious meal, Zuko had finally begun to unwind. He had been reminiscing with his old friends, as well as catching them up on how he and Sokka had been doing. 

Uncle Iroh was thrilled with the festivities; the musicians that Sokka had hired played some songs that, after enough drinks, made the older man get up and dance. 

Aang was still young, and had a big week ahead of him; he knew what fermented grape tea did to people, and had decided not to drink too much, and instead marvel at how everyone else changed after a glass too many of the tea.

“I just think…” Suki trailed off, staring at Katara, “I just think you’re so pretty…” 

Katara burst into a giggle fit, leaving Aang feeling uncomfortable. 

“You’re so sweet! I mean how do you even, like…” Katara trailed off, staring at Suki, “get your makeup to be like that? I just wanna be you, y’know?”

Mai, who had been quiet for most of the night, cleared her throat. “Are we all just gay now?” She snapped. She hadn’t had any type of reacting when Sokka and Zuko walked into the party together, though to be fair she never reacted to anything.

“Mai, stop.” Zuko had tried to ignore her for most of the evening. They hadn’t left off on the best terms; he had dumped her out of nowhere, before disappearing and cutting off all contact with her. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed to tell her she was with Sokka, he just didn’t think she was ready to know this part of him.

He had been right.

“No, Zuko, I’m serious!” Mai insisted, “what happened to you guys? I mean, nothing against gay people, but...Zuko, did you ever really love me? Do you even love  _ him? _ ” 

She had refused to say Sokka’s name all night. This was the last straw; Sokka stood up, his face flushed, and banged his fist on the table. 

“He loves me more than he ever loved you! I express myself, and I show him I love him, and--” Sokka faltered. Mai had been a pretty good girlfriend to Zuko, but he wasn’t about to admit it.

Mai just scoffed, “whatever. I’m leaving.” 

Everyone watched as she stood up, sliding her chair back, and walked out of the dining hall. 

Aang cleared his throat, trying to cut the tension, “what were you saying about Suki’s makeup, Katara?”

\---

As they bid their farewells for the evening, Sokka clung to Zuko’s waist. His vision had become blurred around the edges, his face flushed, and his brain was working slightly slower than his mouth. Still, he was determined to end the party on a high note. “Byeeee everyone! See ya whenever!” Sokka waved his hand wildly towards the departing guests while Zuko simply stared up at him.

“This party was a mess,” Zuko started, “but a really fun one. Thank you, I really appreciate it.”   
Sokka broke into a goofy smile, “you mean it? That girl....that girl Mao didn’t ruin it for you?”   
Zuko laughed, “Mai...her name’s Mai.”

“Whatever,” Sokka huffed, His brows furrowed at the thought of her words. Of course Zuko loved him. Why else would he marry him? 

“Listen,” Zuko could feel Sokka’s insecurity as though it were his own, “I love you more than anything and anyone in the world. Mai, well...she was good to me, but I needed someone to push me out of my comfort zone. To teach me what romantic love is.”

“A-and that person’s me?” Sokka blubbered, thanking the spirits for Zuko’s reassurance.

“Of course it is, you big cry baby,” it was Zuko who took Sokka’s hand this time, “now come on, let’s head back home. To  _ our  _ home.”


End file.
